Tuesday’s State of the Union Address from President Barack Obama followed the usual pattern for the speech, a laundry list of proposals on everything from income inequality to immigration reform to Afghanistan–but with a twist.

This week’s Wall Street Journal/NBC poll, however, shows the divisions on what should be the 2014 agenda extend far beyond the walls of Congress to the population at large. On issues that Americans generally agree should be “absolute priority” for 2014 – for instance, creating jobs or reducing the deficit — there isn’t a lot of consensus on the actual policy. On the flip side, when a policy is straightforward – for example, raising the minimum wage – Americans disagree on its importance and merits.

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The absolute priority question is valuable because it measures not just support for an idea, but support for that idea compared to other issues at a particular moment. It measures urgency.

Using that measure, one issue stood above all else in this week’s poll for creating near universal agreement: jobs. More than 9 in 10 — 91% — of those polled said job creation should be a priority for 2014. And across the nation’s many political and cultural divides those numbers largely held.

Creating Jobs Should be an “Absolute Priority” in 2014

Democrats

95%

Independents

90%

Republicans

86%

Urban

92%

Suburban

91%

Rural

92%

Income under $30,000 a year

93%

Income more than $75,000 a year

89%

In his State of the Union speech, Mr. Obama devoted more than 10% of his words to the issue of job creation, more than any topic except income inequality, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis. So it would seem it is on the president’s 2014 agenda.

But “job creation” is a broad idea, not a proposal, and different groups traditionally have had very different ideas of what’s involved in it. For Republicans it often means calls for lower regulations and tax cuts, while for Democrats it often means direct government investment.

This week’s poll numbers also suggest Mr. Obama was out of sync with public interest in deficit reduction. He used only about 2% of the speech’s words to discuss the topic, but support for making that issue an absolute priority runs high across the board, with no group below 60%.

Reducing the Deficit Should be an “Absolute Priority” in 2014

Democrats

66%

Independents

69%

Republicans

84%

Urban

67%

Suburban

78%

Rural

77%

Income under $30,000 a year

66%

Income more than $75,000 a year

76%

In some ways, however, deficit reduction is like the jobs issue. Do Americans want deficit reduction tackled in 2014? Yes. The question is how?

Reducing the deficit is necessarily going to involve a mix of budget cuts and revenue increases and Democrats and Republicans always have different ideas of what that mix should be. Last year’s protracted battle over government spending showed that. In the end a deal was reached, but not without hard contentious arguments and a government shutdown that neither party seems interested in reliving this year.

And when one gets away from broad agenda items, such as jobs and deficit, to look at specifics, such as raising the minimum wage, the poll numbers are more complicated. While the overall numbers show some support for raising the minimum wage – 51% say it should be an absolute priority – the splits between different groups are massive.

Raising the Minimum Wage Should be an “Absolute Priority” in 2014

Democrats

76%

Independents

51%

Republicans

26%

Urban

61%

Suburban

45%

Rural

50%

Income under $30,000 a year

66%

Income more than $75,000 a year

43%

Mr. Obama spent a fair amount of time on this issue and lots on the larger idea of income equality Tuesday night. But as the numbers above show, its real impact is likely as a wedge issue in this election year, given the sharp disparity in the Democratic and Republican numbers.

The fact that many people in urban and rural America see the issue as a priority is surprising. Voters in those kinds of communities don’t agree on much. And it’s noteworthy that rural Americans, who strongly disapprove of Mr. Obama’s presidency, are evenly split on prioritizing an issue he is championing. That number bears watching this year. But with the splits in the polling above, it’s still hard to see much happening on the minimum wage at the federal level this year.

The point? Whatever the driving force pushing a specific agenda in 2014, it looks like a very heavy lift in a divided country.

About Washington Wire

Washington Wire is one of the oldest standing features in American journalism. Since the Wire launched on Sept. 20, 1940, the Journal has offered readers an informal look at the capital. Now online, the Wire provides a succession of glimpses at what’s happening behind hot stories and warnings of what to watch for in the days ahead. The Wire is led by Reid J. Epstein, with contributions from the rest of the bureau. Washington Wire now also includes Think Tank, our home for outside analysis from policy and political thinkers.